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I don’t follow sports anymore, but as a Northeast Ohio resident by birth, I’m happy to see the Indians doing as well as they are. Lord knows they’re overdue. Besides, it’s nice to see some variety in the postseason.

Meanwhile, there’s Steinbrenner acting like a giant gasbag again. Oh, so you’re going to fire a manager who’s been nothing but a class act for you for more than a decade, just because the team only did better than 75% of the other teams in baseball this year. Sorry you couldn’t buy another Series birth this year, George. My condolences. Welcome to how every other team feels most of the time.

If I was Torre, I’d quit before Steinbrenner got the satisfaction of firing me. No one should have to put up with a boss who threatens to fire him in front of the media, and Torre deserves respect just for putting up with his antics as long as he has. I’m sure another struggling team would pay through the nose to bring Torre onboard, or maybe he could take a break from the game, maybe go on the lecture circuit Lou Holtz-style. He’s certainly earned the time off.

I honestly have no strong opinion as to whether Joe Torre stays or goes. He’s neither a great manager (check out his record before the Yankees hired him) nor a terrible one. On the downside, he’s a subpar tactician with no real motivational skills. On the plus side, he’s great at managing egos and keeping the team on an even keel (which important in a year like 2007, when the team got off to a terrible start).

So, if the front office decides, “We’re still a championship calibre team and all we need is a little more pitching,” I’d be fine with Torre coming back. Or, if the front office decides, “With all our talent, we should be doing better than a first round playoff exit every year, and some big changes are needed,” I’d be okay with letting Torre go. We could give Joe a huge “Thank You” party and move on to a guy who’s a proven motivator or a proven tactical genius.

But making a change just for the sake of making a change makes no sense, and that’s what hiring Don Mattingly would be. I LOVED Mattingl yas a player, and I have no doubt he’d be a class act, but… is he a better strategist than Torre? Nobody knows. Is he a fiery guy who’ll shake up the underachievers? No, he’s a pretty mellow guy. Is he more knowledgeable about handling pitchers (something Torre didn’t do very well, in my opinion)? No, not really.

It MAY be time to let Torre go… but only if the alternative is obviously better. I say, either keep Torre or make a REAL change.

On the downside, [Torre’s] a subpar tactician with no real motivational skills. On the plus side, he’s great at managing egos and keeping the team on an even keel (which important in a year like 2007, when the team got off to a terrible start).

But for any conceivable Yankees team in the near future, I think the latter set of skills are FAR more important. Any Yankees manager any time soon will have to deal with (1) George Steinbrenner, and (2) a lot of high-priced veteran free agents. Yeah, a Jim Leland or the 80s Tommy LaSorda might bring a needed skills set, but is it conceivable that a man like that would want to deal with (1) and (2). Personally, just for the entertainment value, Ozzie Guillen would be so awesome.